I've searched the whole internet and can't find anything that matches these symptoms. I have a 2007 Accord EX-L Coupe and I have a whirring noise that appears around 25 mph and stays there at any speed above 25 mph. It sounds alot like wind traveling through a tunnel and it's low pitched. It doesn't change with engine rpm, only with speed of the vehicle, and it is present when I coast in neutral. I'm thinking a wheel bearing but it doesn't change when I turn in either direction. I was also thinking center support bearing, but I definitely hear the noise on the left side. What annoys me so much though is that I can't pinpoint it to the front or the rear. It's not the tires, I checked them and rotated them and the sound is still in the same general area (left side lol). I just wanted to pinpoint the problem before I throw money into it, as I've read on alot of forums of people changing wheel bearings and the noise is still there. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!!

 

Defective wheel bearing can be detected by lifting wheel and spinning by hand w/ fingers on bearing cap/housing. Any roughness should be felt through fingers. Sometimes can be heard.

Bearing play may not be present.

Bearing noise will generally get worse w/ time, so if you can stand the noise, waiting may produce a more definite confirmation.

Suggest checking trim for any looseness. A vibrating trim piece (bumper cover, window trim, wheel liner, etc might produce a noise at speed.

good luck

 

See this thread regarding wheel bearings:

https://www.hondaaccordforum.com/for...d-noise-50790/

My own personal experience was similar to JimBlake's, in that the wheel bearing felt rough and did not spin smoothly when spinning by hand after the knuckle was removed.

Changing the wheel bearing on my car did resolve it.

 

My experience was just to illustrate that wheel bearings can fail in different ways. They don't always get loose, sometimes they get tight & make growling sounds. Thd sound doesn't always change when you steer, but very often it DOES change with steering.

 

thanks for your help so far guys! I stripped the rear wheels down to the hubs and couldn't find any symptoms that go along with a bad wheel bearing. Everything spun smoothly and I even used a stethoscope to listen for clicking/grinding/pebbly sounds...nothing. I was hoping it would be the rear as I managed to grab a timken hub assembly for $40 and was ready to do the job myself.

As for the front. Is there anything else that could cause this kind of noise coming from the left side besides a wheel bearing? I know there's alot more there. I did put the front wheels on jack stands and put the car in gear. The left wheel stops and goes randomly, while the right wheel spun fine. I did also hear a clicking sound on the left side when it was doing this. When I pushed the gas and let go, both wheels spun fine and no more clicking sound. I do not hear this clicking sound while driving on the ground (lol). I also put my stethoscope on the left knuckle and heard grinding noises (I did this when the clicking sound was gone). My guess is the left front wheel bearing has gone bad, but my questions is can anything else be causing these symptoms? I know a front wheel bearing is an expensive job, and I'm hoping to get this fixed in one try. Thanks!

 

Update: I put the car on a ramp, went under it, and pulled up and down on the axles near the center where the heat shield is. There is a little bit of play on both sides with reasonable force, maybe 1/4" - 1/2". Is this too much play? If I'm not mistaken, does this mean my center support bearing is bad? My research tells me that a center support bearing can sound like a bad wheel bearing. Any opinions? I'm not really familiar with the drivetrain (just a pharmacy student with a hobby and a passion for learning and saving money), so I actually don't really know if automatics have a center support bearing. I know we don't have an intermediate shaft lol....

 

I think you're describing the extension shaft support bearing. I have heard of failures of this bearing in Accords, leading to replacement of CV axles before the true fault was detected. 1/4-1/2" play is excessive for a bearing for sure.

good luck

 

Ahh from another one of your posts, you say that this extension shaft goes to the driver's side. Perhaps this explains why the sound is at the driver's side. For a while, I ruled out the support bearing because the sound definitely coming from the left side. I do realize that sound travels and can appear at a different spot from the source, but I'm pretty sure it would be loudest AT the source.

 

Here is a video I took when I went under the car this morning. It's pretty dark, but you can get the idea....read the description in the video...



Also, here is the driveshaft picture at Majestic Honda for A/T. TexasHonda, could you identify where the extension shaft and support bearing would be? Thanks!!

Honda Automotive Parts

 

A little difficult to be sure of reference, but video appears to be taken from behind CV axle looking foward. If the boot in the video is the outboard CV joint, then that is worn out. Far too much play. If that is inner boot, you need to determine if slop is from CV joint or extension shaft bearing.

good luck